Fighting in Hockey Vs. Boxing Vs. In General

My Dad and I had a recent discussion where I was telling him that I was looking forward to watching the Oscar De La Hoya fight against Floyd Mayweather (boxing, in case you didn't follow these things). He responded to me that boxing disgusts him, since he can't fathom two people beating the tar out of each other (even though they have mouthguards and boxing gloves and the fights are fully regulated and referreed). Yet, when I brought up that he is like a spectator in a Roman colosseum, when it comes to hockey fights, he retorted by telling me that they were two different animals. I pressed further, indicating to him that hockey fights are spur of the moment, (likely) fueled by anger, and these are not professional boxers, but players who drop their gloves and basically street fight their opponents. I mentioned that he's, unfortunately, been brainwashed by Don Cherry, to think that fighting is part of the game. It's not in international play, nor is it in Olympic play. Yet the excitement is still there, maybe even more so. There's no fighting in the NHL All-Star game, which gathers the sport's best and brightest skilled players. I further indicated that there is no other sport where referrees simply step back, act like idiots trying to size up at which point they will intervene, though the opportunites are plenty. In the NBA, if you fight, you are tossed, and we have seen copious amounts of instances where that has happened. In football, same thing. In baseball, they have zero tolerance for any kind of fighting. So why in hockey, is it allowable? The argument is that it curbs stickwork, but my goodness, what happens in international play? There is little dirty stickwork and no fighting. I swear, this is just a North American phenomenon.

I am a boxing fan, though I am not a HUGE boxing fan. I like the technical aspects of boxing; those fighters that use strategy to wear down their opponent, utilize defence more than offence, and do not depend on sheer power to win (that gets boring fast, and has all the scents of a one-trick pony). I suppose that people can slag me for defending boxing, yet I am against fighting in hockey, but I really don't see them as the same thing. In hockey, you can have a serious chance of suffering major head injury, particularly if you are not a trained fighter. There are more suckerpunches in hockey than boxing...and don't forget, in hockey, they fight with bare fists. As an aside, I dislike Ultimate Fighting for that very reason. That, I think is barbaric, putting two guys in a gage with bare fists, to basically beat the crap out of one another. Boxing, I see more as a controlled competition, very much like judo, karate, etc. Take the gloves off, and that's a whole different story.

Fighting in real life. In general, I abhor people using violence to solve problems - it could be said that nothing is really solved - it just creates more problems. However...last night I was listening to the radio as I groggily drove home, with my friend trailing me in his car (he had to pick up something at my house, but I'm glad he followed me home, in case I hit a tree or something). Anyhow, as I was listening to the radio, I heard about some Australian kid who is now 18, but was bullied in school ever since he was very young. Now, apparently (and I emphasize apparently) he has suffered long-lasting psychological damage, and the Australian courts agreed and awarded him the equivalent of 1.1 million dollars (Cdn.) in damages. As I was listening to this, I thought about whether or not I would ever let Isaac be subject to 10+ years of bullying. It seems like bullying these days (including the ever-laughable cyber-bullying) has received a lot of press; traditionally, the approach has been that you handle bullies in two ways: ignore them and report it to the authorities, or have your Dad or Uncle teach you to fight back. I've been on the fence on this issue for years, not sure what I'd do. I think that the Bible is very clear in that Christians need to have a non-retaliatory view of conflict - even as Jesus was beaten, he did not strike back.

However, I am wondering if there is any provision for self-defence; that is, using physical means to keep one from being hurt or killed. Are we, as Christians, to teach our kids to take it like a man if they start getting knifed? Or raped? Or is there a means to fight back without retaliating. I think there is, since retaliation tends to carry with it a sentiment or aura of anger, revenge, etc. Fighting back in defending oneself is devoid of all these negative elements, but of course, it can go overboard with self-defense turning offensive very quickly. So where do we draw the line? I'm not too sure, but one thing for sure is that I will be teaching my son how to defend himself, whether it be through martial arts classes or in my basement with a punching bag. Thankfully, he will never have to come to this point, since my wife and I heavily (and I mean heavily) encourage him not to resort to violence to get his way, and we admonish and discipline him when he does not do this. Still, I struggle with whether I will be giving him a mixed signal that fighting is OK in certain situations but is not in others. I am uncertain whether he can differentiate between offensive attacking and defensive protecting, so would I be providing a bad example to him by sending him mixed signals? Before you jump all over me like a rabbit in heat, consider the same situation for your child, if you are a parent. Would you allow your child to live an idealized existence, in order to maintain some social consistency, while your child may end up being the passive object of bullying, or attacks by others? Unfortunately, my faith level in the education system is low and schools disciplining kids is non-existent, for fear of wrecking a child's self-esteem (this whole contemporary idea of children having fragile self-esteems which must be guarded at all costs is laughable at best). So do I, as a parent, need to install in my child the necessary skills to protect him/her from bullies and predators? If so, can I do this in a way that does not make me look inconsistent? Or is this a simple black and white issue of either fighting is always OK or fighting is never OK?